Vandals Use Sticks To Beat 150-year-old Turtle To Death

OTHER NEWS TO NOTE - The World

April 26, 1997

SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC — A giant turtle estimated to be 150 years old was beaten to death by vandals who attacked it with sticks, officials with the National Aquarium said Friday. Nicknamed Mochita, or Stumpy, the turtle had been a familiar figure in Haina, south of Santo Domingo, where it had been seen regularly for at least 20 years. Mochita was estimated to weigh about 600 pounds.